(a) 
Composition. There shall be a school committee that shall consist of 7 members. Six members shall be nominated and elected by and from the voters of the city at large. The mayor shall serve as the seventh member of the school committee by virtue of office and shall have the same powers and duties as the members elected by the voters as school committee members.
(b) 
Term of Office. The term of office for the 6 school committee members elected by the voters shall be for 4 years beginning on the first Monday after the first Tuesday in January in the year following their election and until their successors have been qualified. The terms of office shall be arranged so that 3 such terms are to be filled at each biennial election.
(c) 
Eligibility. A school committee member shall at the time of election be a voter. If a school committee member removes from the city during the term for which elected, the office shall immediately be deemed vacant and filled in the manner provided in section 4-6.
(a) 
Election and Term. Following each biennial city election and as soon as practicable after the school committee members-elect have been qualified as provided in section 9-10, the school committee shall organize by electing 1 of the persons elected to the office of school committee member to serve as school committee chair.
(b) 
Powers and Duties. The school committee chair or a designee shall preside at all meetings of the school committee, regulate its proceedings and decide all questions of order. The school committee chair shall appoint all members of all committees of the school committee, whether special or standing. The school committee chair shall have the same powers to vote upon all measures coming before the school committee as any other member of the school committee. The school committee chair shall perform such other duties consistent with the office as may be provided by this charter or by vote of the school committee in accordance with the by-laws and policies of the school committee.
No member of the school committee shall hold any other city office or city employment for which a salary or other emolument is payable from the city treasury. No former member of the school committee shall hold any compensated appointed city office or city employment until at least 1 year after the date on which the member's service on the school committee has terminated; provided, however, that a city officer or other city employee who has vacated a position in order to serve as a member of the school committee may return to the same office or position of city employment held at the time the position was vacated but shall not be eligible for any other municipal position until at least 1 year after the termination of service as a member of the school committee.
The city council may by ordinance establish an annual salary for members of the school committee. No vote increasing the salary of school committee members shall be effective unless it shall have been adopted during the first 18 months of the term for which the school committee members were elected and unless it provides that the salary is to take effect upon the organization of the city government following the next municipal election. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, members elected to the school committee shall not be eligible to participate in the city's group health or life insurance programs.
The school committee shall have all of the powers conferred on school committees by the General Laws and such additional powers and duties as may be provided by this charter, by ordinance or otherwise and not inconsistent with the grant of powers conferred by the General Laws. The powers and duties of the school committee shall include, but not be limited to:
(i) 
electing a superintendent of the schools who shall be charged with the administration of the school system, subject only to policy guidelines and directives adopted by the school committee;
(ii) 
upon the recommendation of the superintendent, establishing and appointing assistant or associate superintendents as provided in section 59 of chapter 71 of the General Laws;
(iii) 
making all reasonable rules and regulations for the management of the public school system and for conducting the business of the school committee as may be deemed necessary or desirable; and
(iv) 
adopting and overseeing the administration of an annual operating budget for the school department, subject to appropriation by the city council; provided, however, that the school committee shall have general charge and superintendence of all school buildings and grounds and shall furnish all school buildings with proper fixtures, furniture and equipment.
The school committee shall provide ordinary maintenance of all school buildings and grounds unless a central municipal maintenance department, which may include maintenance of school buildings and grounds, is established in accordance with law. If the school committee shall determine that additional classrooms are necessary to meet the educational needs of the community, at least 1 member of the school committee, or a designee of the school committee, shall serve on the agency, board or committee to which the planning or construction of such new, remodeled or renovated school building is delegated.
(a) 
Runner-Up to Succeed to Office. If a vacancy shall occur in the office of school committee member, the vacancy shall be filled, in descending order of votes received, by the candidate for the office of school committee member at the preceding city election who received the highest number of votes without being elected if such person remains eligible and willing to serve as a school committee member. The city clerk shall certify this candidate to the office of school committee to serve for the balance of the then unexpired term.
(b) 
Filling of Vacancies By School Committee. If a vacancy shall occur in the office of school committee member and there is no available candidate to fill the vacancy in the manner provided in subsection (a), the vacancy shall be filled by a majority vote of the remaining members of the school committee. A person elected to fill a vacancy by the school committee shall serve only until the next regular election at which time the vacancy shall be filled by the voters and the person chosen to fill the vacancy shall immediately be sworn and shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term in addition to the term for which the person is elected. A person serving as a school committee member under this section shall not be entitled to have the words "candidate for re-election" printed against the person's name on the election ballot.